The present invention relates to a vehicle windshield mounting structure for mitigating impact on collision objects when the collision objects collide with windshields from the front of vehicles.
As this kind of windshield, a laminated safety glass consisting of an annealing glass, a resin interlayer bonded to the interior-side surface of the annealing glass and an impermeable film bonded to the interior-side surface of the resin interlayer is known as disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. HEI-4-19136.
As another example of such a windshield, a windshield shown in FIGS. 10A and 10B is known. These figures illustrate a state in which a collision object is colliding with a windshield from the interior of a passenger compartment. In the figures, OUT indicates the outside of the passenger compartment and IN the inside of the passenger compartment.
FIG. 10A illustrates a state in which a collision object 211 is heading toward a windshield 212. The windshield 212 is made from a glass having two glasses 213 and 214 curved from the passenger compartment toward the vehicle outside, bonded together with an interlayer 215 (hereinafter referred to as a xe2x80x9claminated glassxe2x80x9d).
The laminated safety glass in HEI-4-19136 or the windshield 212 shown in FIG. 10A takes into account the safety of vehicle passengers, and mitigates impact on the head of a passenger hitting against the laminated safety glass or the windshield 212 upon a vehicle collision. However, no consideration is given to the safety of pedestrians, that is, a collision object from the outside of the vehicle compartment toward the laminated safety glass or the windshield 212.
In FIG. 10B, when the collision object 211 hits on the windshield 212, the windshield 212 is partly broken, mitigating the impact of collision. However, as described above, the windshield 212 does not allow for impact from the vehicle outside. Further, the windshield 212 has a shape curved outward of the passenger compartment, that is, a so-called xe2x80x9carchxe2x80x9d shape in cross section, and is thus more unbreakable against a load from the outside of the passenger compartment than from the inside of the passenger compartment.
Further, recent years"" trends toward short-nose vehicles with passenger compartments expanded in space and slant-nose vehicles with front end portions inclined downward to reduce air resistance in high-speed travel result in increased collisions from the vehicle front toward windshields. On the other hand, under an increased rate of seatbelt wearing and the widespread adoption of airbags, importance is being attached to consideration to the safety of pedestrians in addition to the safety of vehicle passengers. In other words, it is desired to improve a vehicle windshield mounting structure so as to effectively mitigate the impact of collision with windshields from the outside of passenger compartments.
According to the present invention, there is provided a vehicle windshield mounting structure, which comprises: a windshield; mounting members for mounting the windshield; and frangible members provided at the mounting members for supporting the windshield; the frangible members being configured to deform or break when an external force greater than a given force acts on the windshield from the outside of a passenger compartment, thereby causing the windshield to move in its entirety or in part inward into the passenger compartment.
When an external force greater than a given force acts on the windshield from the outside of the passenger compartment, the frangible members deform or brake, so that the windshield can move in its entirety or in part inward into the passenger compartment, further absorbing impact in collision than in conventional windshield mounting structures, and mitigating impact received by a collision object.
In this invention, the frangible members preferably comprise resin members each having at least one notch. Thus providing notches to resin members to be the frangible members can facilitate the formation of the frangible members, resulting in reduction in cost increase.
Further, the use of a material having high toughness for the resin members can allow the windshield to be moved inward into the passenger compartment without breaking the resin members, and to be prevented from falling off the mounting members for retainment.